Thai Basil Chicken

This is my re-creation of my favorite Thai takeout recipe. The fish sauce is the key to making it taste authentic. Tiparos is the best brand I have found. If you want, you can substitute soy in its place but it won't have that tangy Thai flavor.

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Ingredients

Jasmine rice

1 Tbsp. oil, olive or canola

1 lb. chicken breast, cut into thin, bite sized strips

1 onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 Tbsp. fish sauce

2 Tbsp. soy sauce

1 Tbsp. water

1 Tbsp. sugar (optional)

1-3 chili peppers, finely minced (I use the little Thai chilies, serannos or jalapenos will also work, you can also leave them out entirely if you don't like hot!)

2 cups of basil, torn into pieces

Directions

Start your rice, I always use a rice cooker or I ruin it! Heat the oil in a wok (or large saute pan) and add chicken. Cook until browned, 3-5 minutes, and remove from pan. Add onion and garlic and stir fry for 2 minutes. Mix fish sauce, soy sauce, water and sugar together (I use the measuring cup for my rice cooker).

Add back in chicken and sauce and continue cooking for a couple of minutes. Remove from heat, add basil and chilies and mix. Serve over rice. If you are feeding children or people who don't like chilies and/or basil, you can dish their portions out first and then add the rest of the ingredients. I started really simple for my kids and worked them up to eating the basil too. This has a great fresh flavor, different from regular Chinese stir fry.